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The Targ fire RESISTANCE debate...


Stannis Lives

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I don't have my books, but reserve this spot for when I get home. There are 3 seperate characters in DWD that claim they saw Dany on fire when she left the Fighting Pit. Dany herself claims it was just like the funeral Pyre, because she was on fire, but only her hair burned. I'm paraphrasing, but I will find the exact quotes when I get home.

Also, Martin used the same exact descriptive phrase for Dany in the Fighting Pit when Quentyn was burned ("furnace wind" I believe).

EDIT

The same expression used for both Dany and Quentyn:

Drogon roared. The sound filled the pit. A furnace wind engulfed her.
Quentyn turned and threw his left arm across his face to shield his eyes from the furnace wind. Rhaegal, he reminded himself, the green one is Rhaegal. When he raised his whip, he saw that the lash was burning. His hand as well. All of him, all of him was burning.

Ser Barristan:

Her hair was aflame. She had the whip in her hand and she was shouting, then she was on the dragon’s back, flying.

The Green Grace and Ser Barristan:

Even your own young queen, fair Daenerys who called herself the Mother of Dragons … we saw her burning, that day in the pit … even she was not safe from the dragon’s wroth.”

“Her Grace is not … she …”

“… is dead. May the gods grant her sweet sleep.” Tears glistened behind her veils.

“Let her dragons die as well.”

Daenerys:

Only the birth of her dragons amidst the fire and smoke of Khal Drogo’s funeral pyre had spared Dany herself from being dragged back to Vaes Dothrak to live out the remainder of her days amongst the crones of the dosh khaleen.

The fire burned away my hair, but elsewise it did not touch me. It had been the same in Daznak’s Pit. That much she could recall, though much of what followed was a haze.

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I would say it implies that when some blood magic to make you not burn to death is involved then maybe you will be resistant... :box: ;)

Aye. I would agree that it takes more than just being a Targ for some fire resistance.
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Just echoing the dornishman's wife here

Martin: No, no Targaryans are immune to fire. The thing with Dany and the dragons, that was just a one-time magical event, very special and unique.

The Targaryans can tolerate a bit more heat than most ordinary people, they like really hot baths and things like that, but that doesn't mean they're totally immune to fire, no. Dragons, on the other hand, are pretty much immune to fire.

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I agree with OP; I think that, under the right circumstances, a person with Targaryen blood can be extremely resistant to heat/burning. Does this mean that it is something to rely on? Not at all. I think that it requires specific magical circumstances, which were met when Dany hatched her dragons. It could just be that genetically, Targaryens have a stronger resistance to heat than other mortals.

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http://web.archive.o...pts/031899.html

http://www.westeros...._immune_to_fire

http://www.westeros..../SSM/Entry/945/

And for the record, I wouldn't say you quoted the author, you paraphrased and then passed your judgement of his statement as fact.

You point to all the mentions that Targs are not IMMUNE to fire. I made a point of putting emphasis on RESISTANT. I did quote GRRM. I copy and pasted it. The "Translation" part is simply a logical inference based on the specific words he used.

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I'm not sure "it was never the case that all Targaryens are immune to all fire at all times." clears up anything. If anything, it draws more questions. It says all Targs This suggests that some Targs are immune all types of fire, and some of those are immune at all times.

:agree:

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I think the 'Dany funeral pyre' walking ritual is similar to the Hindu religious ritual of 'sati' where a widow walks into the funeral pyre of her dead husband, but I don't understand the concept enough to elaborate. What I'd vaguely assume, is that Dany got married to fire during that ritual, and that's why she was unharmed.

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I don't have my books, but reserve this spot for when I get home. There are 3 seperate characters in DWD that claim they saw Dany on fire when she left the Fighting Pit. Dany herself claims it was just like the funeral Pyre, because she was on fire, but only her hair burned. I'm paraphrasing, but I will find the exact quotes when I get home.

Also, Martin used the same exact descriptive phrase for Dany in the Fighting Pit when Quentyn was burned ("furnace wind" I believe).

Witnesses also said they saw her fall off the dragon. Ergo, the witness accounts were unreliable.

Dany and Quentyn's scenes were very different. For one, there was a dragon from behind who blew actual fire on Quentyn. Also, all of Quentyn body clearly catches on fire (as evidenced by burned whip and clothing) while Dany's did not (evidenced by intact clothing).

Apple Martini where art thou?

On vacation. :( She'll be happy her work carried on without her.

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Witnesses also said they saw her fall off the dragon. Ergo, the witness accounts were unreliable.

Dany and Quentyn's scenes were very different. For one, there was a dragon from behind who blew actual fire on Quentyn. Also, all of Quentyn body clearly catches on fire (as evidenced by burned whip and clothing) while Dany's did not (evidenced by intact clothing).

Feel free to interpret the quotes how you well, I'm only stating what's in the text. Personally I believe there is something magical involved with Dany and fire, but I'm not going to try and argue this anymore. Also, it was Dany, Barristan, and the Green Grace all of whom claim Dany was burning or on fire in the Fighting Pit, with Dany thinking it was just like Drogo's funeral pyre.

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You point to all the mentions that Targs are not IMMUNE to fire. I made a point of putting emphasis on RESISTANT. I did quote GRRM. I copy and pasted it. The "Translation" part is simply a logical inference based on the specific words he used.

I really just think he is alluding to MMD's botched magic to protect herself as Dany walked into the pyre.

Read this post it is very enlightening.

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Feel free to interpret the quotes how you well, I'm only stating what's in the text. Personally I believe there is something magical involved with Dany and fire, but I'm not going to try and argue this anymore. Also, it was Dany, Barristan, and the Green Grace all of whom claim Dany was burning or on fire in the Fighting Pit, with Dany thinking it was just like Drogo's funeral pyre.

But Dany is wrong, because it wasn't just like the pyre. The pyre engulfed her entire body and burned her clothes away while the pit did not. Dany is unrelaible in how she is remembering and interpreting what happened. She didn't fall off the dragon, it wasn't like the pyre event, and she wasn't the girl on fire (save for her hair, of course).

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I think the 'Dany funeral pyre' walking ritual is similar to the Hindu religious ritual of 'sati' where a widow walks into the funeral pyre of her dead husband, but I don't understand the concept enough to elaborate. What I'd vaguely assume, is that Dany got married to fire during that ritual, and that's why she was unharmed.

This is actually an interesting analogy - in the HoU she is referred to by 4 titles: Mother of Dragons, Daughter of Death, Slayer of Lies, and Bride of Fire. Now that I think about it, all 4 titles can effectively refer to the scene with the funeral pyre.

Mother of Dragons: Dany gives "birth" to dragons in the pyre

Daughter of Death: Dany is reborn through the pyre, which is a place of death both because it is Drogo's funeral pyre and also because MMD is burned alive in it

Slayer of Lies: MMD was a liar, or teller of half-truths and she is "slain" by Dany on the pyre

Bride of Fire: As you stated, Dany "married" fire in the pyre and gives birth to the "children of fire," dragons

I'm not sure if this makes her any more fire-resistant than, say, Cat or Sansa, but it's certainly an interesting thought.

About Dany's hot baths - based on contextual reading, I don't see it as Martin hinting at any form of heat resistance. Rather, it seems to be a way of revealing Dany's desire to "cleanse away" certain perceptions she may have about herself (i.e. she is really just a slave)

They filled her bath with hot water brought up from the kitchen and scented it with fragrant oils. The girl pulled the rough cotton tunic over Dany’s head and helped her into the tub. The water was scalding hot, but Daenerys did not flinch or cry out. She liked the heat. It made her feel clean. Besides, her brother had often told her that it was never too hot for a Targaryen. “Ours is the house of the dragon,” he would say. “The fire is in our blood.”
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